Help! Should I Keep My New Old Ebay Rug?!

So my Ebay rug came. When I unrolled it, I started to get the itchy eye... darker than I expected, condition not as evenly worn, and just generally less awesome than my fantasy porn projection of the real rug. Surprise surprise. My new rug has saggy boobs and stretch marks. But, maybe it's still good? Or maybe not? Karly votes a solid yes, Ben votes a solid no, and as always I cannot make any decisions about my own home (but I'm happy to tell you what to do with yours -- funny how that works). So, my tasteful friends, I ask you: should it stay or should it go? I have two days to decide whether to send it back so your comments are desperately needed.

Sorry about the AWFUL pictures -- it's pitch dark in here right now and the long exposures are throwing off the color and lighting. Anyway, there it is. I'll probably get a new end table, but for now everything else stays (although I want to burn that chair... maybe I will send it over to the in laws' new house?).

Another view with even more terrible lighting. So, the rug -- too dark? Too burgundy? Just right?

A reminder of what things did look like -- with much better lighting, a closer angle and some different furniture.

I'm at the point where I'm shopping for couches, rugs, pillows and end tables. In other words, I'm overwhelmed and I have too much stuff. I just need to decide about the rug because I don't have enough money to buy all that other stuff.

Help me pleez!

Spending Binge!

After all the hemming and hawing and threatening and waffling I've been doing recently, I finally bought something that cost more than $2 at the thrift store -- a new rug. Well, a really-old-but-new-to-me-rug. Mostly this happened because Karly is buying a new rug. In my infinite kindness and generosity, I started "helping" her look at rugs, which actually entailed very little other than selfishly hoarding rugs in my Ebay bid basket. After enduring a day of no sleep cranky toddler, I became fed up with whining in general (mine included) and I pulled the trigger. This all occurred while riding home with an overly full stomach after a very delicious gumbo dinner, so it is possible my brain was destroyed by an overabundance of impatience, salt and sassafrass, but I don't think so. Let's check out the goods.

Oh, I really really hope I like it! You never know with these crazy Ebay rugs, and this one is antique with some funky abrash issues:

Plus I really hope the color is ok. The listing says it's rust, which should jibe with this painting:

But if that rug is actually salmon, I am skrewed. I also hope the fancy new-old rug will be ok with our couch, because if it's not then I will just have to buy another couch.

I'm also also thinking about switching our marble coffee table out for this Pace table that I bought 8 million years ago (you can read all about that crazy saga here), but I'm worried the chrome will make all the brass look weird... I guess I'll just have to buy new lamps, too.

And this, my friends, is how I will end up living a life of poverty. Damn, you decorating domino effect.